People holding pictures of victims of the guerrilla conflict in the 80s and 90s march after Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski pardoned former president Alberto Fujimori in Lima, Peru, on December 25, 2017. Photo - Reuters

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People holding pictures of victims of the guerrilla conflict in the 80s and 90s march after Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski pardoned former president Alberto Fujimori in Lima, Peru, on December 25, 2017. Photo - Reuters

Lima: Peru's ailing ex-president Alberto Fujimori on Tuesday asked the public for forgiveness, two days after receiving a controversial pardon from the country's current leader.

"I am aware that the results of my government were well received on one side, but I admit that I have let down other compatriots, and I ask them to forgive me with all my heart," Fujimori said in a Facebook video filmed from his hospital bed.

The 79-year-old had been serving a 25-year sentence for corruption and human rights abuses committed during his time in office from 1990 to 2000.

He was transferred from his prison cell to a hospital on Saturday after suffering from low blood pressure and an irregular heartbeat, the latest in a string of hospitalisations for the ex-leader.

President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski ordered the pardon of Fujimori and seven other prisoners on Sunday on humanitarian grounds, placing himself in the middle of a political crisis just days after he avoided impeachment.

Fujimori's son Kenji had drained votes away from a parliamentary bid last week to impeach Kuczynski on suspicion of corruption, sparking speculation the pardon was political.

Alberto Fujimori has spent more than a decade imprisoned for ruthlessly cracking down on political rivals and for ordering dozens of murders and overseeing other brutal tactics.

Despite his conviction for human rights abuses, however, Fujimori retains a level of popularity in Peru for having defeated left-wing guerrillas and for stabilising the economy after a period of crisis.